The world's most comprehensive collection of dissertations and theses. Learn More

Attitudes toward the natural philosopher in the early Roman Empire (100 B.C. to 313 A.D.)

The present study demonstrates the existence of significant praise and admiration for the aims and achievements of the natural philosopher among the pagan elite of the Roman Empire from 100 B.C. to 313 A.D. Chapter 1 surveys the problem, focus, and methodology. Chapter 2 explores what a natural philosopher was thought to be and do, finding it was the nearest prototype of the modern scientist. Chapter 3 shows that natural philosophy had little place in Roman education except for the highly motivated, but finds considerable praise and appreciation for those who did pursue it. Chapter 4 explores what natural philosophers as 'scientists' actually achieved, and finds a positive belief in the reality and value of 'scientific progress' among educated Romans. Chapter 5 surveys evidence of praise and admiration for the natural philosopher and his goals and activities. Chapter 6 surveys the conclusion that the natural philosopher and his activity were not completely marginalized but were held in high esteem by many among the educated elite.

If your library subscribes to the ProQuest Dissertations & Theses
(PQDT) database, you may be entitled to a free electronic version of this
graduate work. If not, you will have the option to purchase one, and access
a 24 page preview for free (if available).

About ProQuest Dissertations & Theses
With nearly 4 million records, the ProQuest Dissertations & Theses (PQDT)
Global database is the most comprehensive collection of dissertations and theses in the
world. It is the database of record for graduate research.

PQDT Global combines content from a range of the world's premier universities -
from the Ivy League to the Russell Group. Of the nearly 4 million graduate works
included in the database, ProQuest offers more than 2.5 million in full text
formats. Of those, over 1.7 million are available in PDF format. More than
90,000 dissertations and theses are added to the database each year.

If you have questions, please feel free to visit the ProQuest Web site -
http://www.proquest.com - or call
ProQuest Hotline Customer Support at 1-800-521-3042.